The Many Ways You May Have Denied Yourself of FREE Money Without Knowing It!

Is there even such thing as free money? We’ll, we use to receive money from our parents, relatives or friends (or strangers if we’re lucky).

And we all know those days are long gone. The free money stopped coming in after we celebrated our 18th birthday, or when we graduated from college, when we got our first job, or right after getting married.

But there are many ways in which we can still receive free money as adults. They come in many forms, and we may have ignored the chances and opportunities when they presented themselves, without us even knowing it.

Here are some of the ways that we may have denied ourselves of “free money” before. See if you could relate to these.

Passing up on Rewards Card Offers

Almost every store offers a rewards card, some for free when you buy a pricey product. These rewards cards earn you points which can be used in your next purchase.

I think the SM Advantage card is the most common and flexible rewards card available in the Philippines. We all go and shop at SM, so why not get the card? No, I am not promoting this product at all! In fact, I’ve always thought that the P100 fee for the card is ridiculous that I never bothered getting one. But things changed when I received the BDO Rewards Card which has the same function and usage as an SM Advantage Card.

And you are right, you don’t always need to get a rewards card. To cite an example, a branch of ACE Hardware offered me their card when I purchased several items from them last year. I thought it would be useful as I will be needing to go back to the store for more, but I barely earned points after that. I still have a year before the card expires though, so I hope I’d be able to at least recover the P100 that I spent for the card.Lesson learned: If you are unsure if you will be a regular customer to the store, get their rewards card only if it’s free!

Not Using Your Points!

So you have all these cards and you never used the points you’ve earned. Before you knew it, the redeeming period had already lapsed or the card has is already expired. Or perhaps you always forget to use them when you shop? That would be points and money wasted.

Make sure to check those cards in your purse or wallet when you can. They may have already earned you free money for your next shopping.

Not Taking Advantage of Discounted Payments

Aside from looking for discounted items when you shop, you might be paying bills where you could get a discount by paying in advance.

One example is the Real Property Tax or Amilyar. I just started paying mine through my developer, and next year, I’ll be making the payment in the city hall myself. I am already planning to go and pay in January next year right after the holidays! Why so early?! Because I want to get that 20% discount, while intentionally avoiding the long lines occurring towards the end of the deadline.

Ignoring Company Discounts

Some shops would partner with companies or offices to offer discounts to their employees. This gives your company ID some discounting powers! Check if your company is getting any of these, or perhaps you did not read the email?

Avoiding Credit Card Perks

Because they are evils that lure us towards spending more.

But in summary, there may be some discount offerings from merchants which are exclusive to your bank’s credit card holders. I often ignore these promos, but it doesn’t hurt to know if there are any offer which you can take advantage of. This category actually deserves an entirely separate article because there are actually a lot of credit card perks that you can get if you are a wise credit card user.

IMPORTANT: DO NOT purchase because it’s discounted. Swipe because you NEED it, it is TIMELY, and it is DISCOUNTED.

Freebies

I am guilty of this because I don’t often like freebies the same way that I stay away from free tastes at grocery stores.

But freebies, are still free money in disguise. Be careful though and do not fall in to the trap of being so attracted to freebies, and purchase an item just because of the free stuff that comes with it. So, similar to rule about credit card promos above, only get an item that comes with a freebie, if you need it! Or if the freebie comes without any conditions, that would be perfect!

Referral Fees

There are also many ways in which you could earn from referral fees. Let’s start at work, your company’s recruitment team may have a referral program where you get a cash reward when an applicant that you refer gets hired.

If you are a Grab or Uber rider, you also get points or free rides when someone downloads the app and sign up using your referral code. If you are a frequent traveler and is an Airbnb and Klook customer, they have a referral program which you could take advantage of too.

Do you know why agents are willing to move mountains in order for your credit card application, or bank loans to get approved? Because of the referral fees that they receive! So next time you take “referring” for granted, think again!
Could you relate to any of these? What other sources of “free money” could you share?